Pharoahe Monch Album: “W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)”

Pharoahe Monch has grasped the most elusive embodiment of hip-hop music: the crafting of a perfect album. The display of skill, material, production, and timing puts this long-awaited piece into another category altogether--and that is saying quite a lot! Our genres' roster over the previous three-years, at least, has seen some truly amazing and encouraging offerings from vets, budding talents, and rookies, many of which have damn-near reinvigorated the approach of us fellow artists. Even with positing that, I have to admit there is something very different about W.A.R.--something unlike not only Monch's priors, but also very different from the overwhelming majority of lyrical-aesthetician contributions: I am calling this a flawless victory. Such high praise is usually avoided, as a rule--except for where it applies.

Some of the other reviewers have pointed out that production is a slight liability on this one, considering the titular implications. We disagree sharply! Nothing is more boring than an album full of beats, however 'hard', all sounding exactly the same, without range or creativity! Pharoahe actually has soul, folks--and that is why production goes through the moods experienced on W.A.R. (i.e., 'Black Hand Side'). Here we have an album where the emcee has balanced all of the necessary elements: confidence and strength, subtlety and nuance, melody and message, persona and depth, pathos and inspiration, vision and timing, `self'-expression and community/audience involvement (guests and supporters). Are those not attributes of what we hope to find in new releases? I can name a number of recent projects that seem to have a connection to each other, a common-thread running through them; yet W.A.R. sounds like a distillation of all those perspectives, a `Calculated Amalgamation' if you will--minus any weaknesses. Much of the style and wordplay on here, including cameos who are punching above their weight, is exhilaratingly intimidating: consider your first `WOW!'-moment in hip-hop to fully understand what I mean (i.e., 'Assassins' with Jean Grae & Royce da 5'9'').

So, while looking forward to reaching for the bar raised, I write these words not as fawning flattery or out of sugary sentimentality, but rather as salute to a legend of the culture.

It's been a long and strange ride these last 20 years for Pharoahe Monch. As a teenager, he made his debut in 1991 as part of the duo Organized Konfusion. They released three albums in their short period- their self titled "Organized Konfusion", their best record "Stress: The Extinction Agenda" and their criminally overlooked swan song, 1997's "The Equinox". After he and his partner Prince Po parted ways in 1998, Pharoahe embarked on a solo career for the second decade of his career. He signed with the indie hip hop label Rawkus Records and released his 1999 solo debut "Internal Affairs", which contained the huge hit "Simon Says". Things started to get off to a good start, until a few years later when Rawkus entered into a distribution deal with MCA Records while the label was on its last legs. As a result, both labels were phased out in early 2003 and a few Rawkus artists were asked to go to MCA's sister label Geffen Records. While his labelmates Mos Def and Talib Kweli accepted the move to Geffen, Pharoahe refused due to the label's questionable history with hip hop. As a result, his debut remained out of print. Over the next few years, he was wooed by other labels that really wanted him, such as Dr. Dre's Aftermath Entertainment as well as Sean "P. Diddy" Combs' Bad Boy Entertainment. He refused deals from both of them on the grounds of artistic freedom, though Pharoahe wrote "The Future" on P. Diddy's 2006 album "Press Play". He signed with Loud Records' founder Steve Rifkind's SRC label, but at that point, Rifkind's focus shifted from underground hip hop to rhythmic urban pop (David Banner, Akon and Melanie Fiona). His long overdue sophomore album "Desire" came and went with little promotion- so much so that no one even knew it was released.

In late 2010, Pharoahe made the announcement that he was going to sign with indie hip hop label Duck Down Records, an imprint owned by Buckshot of the trio Black Moon. Several months later, he released his first album in four years, the politically charged "W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)". On this new record, he brings in some big names on this project- such as Immortal Technique and Living Colour's Vernon Reid on the title track "W.A.R.", Citizen Cope on the rock infused "The Grand Illusion (Circa 1973)" and Jill Scott on the closing track "Still Standing". He reunites with Styles P on "Black Hand Side" with guest vocals from Phonte of The Foreign Exchange and gets brutally honest on the music industry critique "The Hitman". Diamond D., who produced the second single "The Light" from "Internal Affairs" produces the melodic song about the downtrodden "Shine". Pharoahe also channels an old gospel spiritual on "Let My People Go", while on the Exile produced "Evolve", he recites a verse that originated from De La Soul's infamous "Ghost Weed" skit that appeared on their 2000 album "Art Official Intelligence: Mosaic Thump". Overall, "W.A.R. (We Are Renegades)" is a great album from Pharoahe Monch and could possibly be his best work. Hopefully, this time around, he won't run into anymore label problems and gets to release more music on a regular basis.

i do like this album but it's not much different from "desire" which was good too. but.... it just doesn't feel new or fresh. pharoahe monch is one of my favorite artist and i've listened to him since he was in organized konfusion, but his last two albums lack something. overall it's a good album and i would give it four stars if it really deserved it. giving albums good ratings because they don't suck just doesn't make sense. especially when you are familiar with the artist and what they are capable of. on "internal affairs" you could feel the energy which is pharoahe monch. yes he has matured alot since and his rhyming is proof of that but his energy is different. not a good different. i don't think it's a bad album but it definitely could have been better. alot better.

This was my first Pharoahe Monch album purchase and won't be my last. I've been listening to this non-stop since I bought it a few weeks ago. I just can't say enough about it. It's my favorite album so far this year by far and probably the best one I've picked up over the past 2 years. I will be checking out (and probably buying) his previous albums now as well. If you like deep lyrics and are somewhat 'conscious' in music choice, you'll love this.

Seriously this album plays like a movie, just listen to the sequencing. Starts of with history of the character, track 1, then a major action sequence tracks 2-4. Then more plot and backround/drama(great acting/lyrics), actually sounds like he got hurt during a mission and is "saved" by the local people and has time to reflect on his life , in tracks 5-7. The character gets healtly and trains his body again, in tracks 8-9, Then the final action sequence tracks 10-12. Where track 12 sounds like the character doesnt find what he is looking for, BUT finds enlightenment. and track 13 would be the final credits rolling.

Lyrically you wont find anything wrong with this CD. Monch is on point, along with the guest shots.

sorry for the off kilter writing, but monchs war is a CLASSIC!!!